Method and apparatus for forming metal articles



June 29, 1965 R. R. BOLT 3,191,422

IjvIEJx'OD AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING METAL ARTICLES Filed Jan. l0, 19613 Sheets-Sheet 1 W1. ,I -f/A w i f'/ @www June 29, 1965 Filed Jan. l0.1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN V EN TOR.

Arm/Mins June 29",- 1965 R. R. BOLT 3,191,422

METHODl ANDl AFPHRALTUS FOR FORMING METAL ARTICLES Filed Jan., 103J 1961s sheets-sheet s /f' /M @"5 j IN VEN TOR.

United States Patent() 3,191,422 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING jMETAL ARTICLES Richard Robert Bolt, Lake Villa, Ill., assignor toAmerican vCan Company, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New Jersey FiledJan. 10, 1961, Ser. No. 81,727 9 Claims. (Cl. 72-344) The presentinvention relates to the production of thin walled cylindricalcup-shaped metal articles -having a short` tubular neck extendingoutwardly from the endsurf-ace, and has particular reference to a methodof andapparatus Ifor completely forming Isuch an article from a ilatmetal blank in one continuous forming operationf i Cup-shaped articlesfabricated from thin sheet metal such as tin plate and having a shorttubular-shaped opening in the end portion are widely employed ascontainer components. Such a cup-shaped article may -be used as the endclosure of a conventional container body or, where the formed cup has arelatively long side wall, may serve as a one -piece combined can bodyand end. In either case, the short tubular neck is used as the means forretaining a closure cap, 'dispensing spout, dispensing valve, or thelike on the container end.

Heretofore, the fabrication of metal articles of the subject type hasbeen accomplished by a series of separate `successive operative steps.fa flat lblank of sheet metal such as tin plate is first drawn into thedesired cup form. In subsequent separate operiations, a closed tubularneck of desired length is formed on the end surface of the drawn cup andthe closed end of the tubular neck is then opened by a piercingoperation.

While the methods and means presently used achieve the desired result,the forming and piercing 4operations to produce .an open tubular neck ona drawn cup necessitate the use of special machinery and toolingtherefor. Furthermore, these operation-s necessarily result in handlingand processing costs which add to the overall cost of the completedarticle. However, by the novel method Vand means disclosed herein, metalarticles of the subject type can be completely formed in a singlecontinuous forming operation thereby eliminating the need for thespecial machinery and tools to perform the separate forming and piercingoperations with a consequent savings in equipment and processing costs.

Y Accordingly, an object of the present invention `is .to provide animproved method of forming a thin-walled cupshaped metal article havinga short open tubular neck extending outwardly from the end surfacewithout the need for separate forming an-d piercing operations on theend surface of a previously drawn cup.

Another object is to provide such a method wherein the open tubular neckis formed duringand as part of the cup forming operation.

Another object is to provide such a method which requires lessproduction equipment and tooling as compared to methods heretofore used.

A further 4object lis to provide a method of forming `such a cup-shapedIarticle having a circular cross section with a depth which exceeds thediameter and a sidewall thickness substantially less than the thicknessof the original blank.

Yet a further object isto provide an apparatus for forming such acup-shaped article wherein the forming of the cup portion and theforming of the open tubular neck portion is .accomplished in asimultaneous operation.A

lStill a further object is to provide such an apparatus in which theside wall is reduced to `a thickness substantially less than thethickness of the original blank inthe same continuous operation. i

In the methods generally used,

'ice

Numerous other objects and advantages ofthe invention will be apparentas it is better understood from the followmg description, which, takenin connection with the accompanying drawings, discloses a preferredembodiment thereof.

The above objects are accomplished in the present invention by providinga ilat circular blank A of thin sheet metal such as tin plate having acentrally disposed circular hole B. A blank -holder C positions theblank A over an annular drawing die D yand presses the edge or marginalportion of the blank .against the die with a substantial force. A punchE having a cylindrical forming plug F integral with its end surfaceforces the blank A through the die D thereby drawing the flat blank intoa cup form while pulling the marginal portion out from beneath the blankholder C. The force exerted by the blank holder C on the marginalportion of the blank B prevents wrinkling or folding of the blank as itis being forced through the die D and must be suicient to insure thatthe blank is smoothly stretched as it is being drawn. The plug F having-a diameter larger than that of the hole B is forced through the hole Bduring the drawing operation causing the metal adjacent the hole to bedistended and stretched around the plug toform a tubular neck on the endsurface of the drawn cup.

The cup thus formed has a side wall thickness substantially equal to thethickness of the blank. It desired, the diameter of the cup may bereduced and the side wall decreased in thickness in one continuousoperation by forcing the initially drawn cup through one or more ironingdies positioned below and in close succession to the drawing die D.

Numerous other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparentas it is better understood from the following description, which, takenin connection with the Iaccompanying drawings, discloses a preferredembodiment thereof.

Referring to the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a sectional view of a metal forming apparatus embodyingfeatures of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary view similar to FIG. l showing the parts afterthe blank is drawn Vto the cupped form;

FIG. 3 is an elevational View of a modified form of the invention; t

FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 3;

FIGURES 5 and 6 are partial sectional views similar to FIG. 4 showingthe parts in other positions of the operating cycle;

FIG.V 7 is a vertical sectional View of the control valve of FIG. 3.

As a preferred or exemplary embodiment of the instant invention FIG. lshows a hydraulic metal drawing press generally designated 11 having abolster plate 12 attached to a frame 13. An annular drawing die D havinga die aperture 14 is suitably mounted upon the bolster plate 12 .t thebolster plate 12 with the shank portions extending upwardly through theholes 16 in the blank holder C to prevent the blank holder from movingtransversely relative to the die D while permitting it to move upwardlyalong the longitudinal axis of the die.

The lower surface of the blank holder C has a circular recessed portion2@ of substantially the same diameter as Y through the die D. Generally,

alan-sae that of the blank A and a depth which is slightly less than thethickness of the blank, the recessed portion serving to position theblank in axial alignment with the die aperture 14. As thus positioned, amarginal edge portion 23 of the blank A is gripped between the die D andthe blank holder C with a substantial predetermined force due to theaction of compressed springs 24 disposed on the stud Shanks 1S betweenthe blank holder and stud heads 19.

A cylindrical drawing punch E reciprocably mounted above the blankholder C in axial alignment with the die aperture 24 has a lower endsurface 25 with an axially disposed cylindrical forming plug F integraltherewith. The upper end of the punchr E is attached to the piston rodZ6 of a hydraulic actuating cylinder 27, the cylinder being secured tothe frame 13 of the machine and having upper and lower ports 2S and 29respectively.

The admission of pressurized hydraulic fluid from a suitable source (notshown) to the cylinder 27 through the upper port 28 moves the punch Edownwardly. The forming plug F initially contacts and is forced throughthe blank A, the metal adjacent the central aperture B in the blankbeing forced downwardly and draped or stretched about the plug to form atubular neck 3l?. The subsequent continuous movement of the punch Eforces the blank A through the die aperture 14, shaping and stretchingthe blank over the punch to form a cup-shaped article 35 (FIG. 2).During this operation, the force with which the marginal edge portion2.3 of the blank A is gripped between the blank holder C and drawing7die D is sutlicient to insure that the blank is plastically stretchedrather than being wrinkled or folded as the marginal portion iswithdrawn yfrom beneath the blank holder and drawn through the die, butis not so great as to result in tearing or cracking of the metal as aresult of excessive stretching during the forming of the cup 33.

The formed cup 33 has an end 34 and side wall 35 both having a wallthickness approximately equal to the thickness of the blank A. The shapeof the end surface 25 of the punch E determines the shape of the end 34of the drawn cup 33 and may be conical, a combination of conical andspherical shapes, etc. referably, the end surface 25 is the conicalsurface of a truncated cone. Y However, the conical angle of the endsurface 25 must not be too small, since a too sharply pointed punch Etends to distend and fracture the blank A rather than to draw it aminimum conical angle of 120 is desirable, although small angles may besuccessfully used. A

The continuous downward movement of the punch E carries the formed cupthrough a conventional stripper disposed below the die D. The stripperconsists of a segmented tlat annular ring 36 having a series of segments37 adapted to slide radially within a recessed portion 38 in the lowersurface of the bolster plate 12. The segments 37 are urged radiallyinwardly by springs 39 and are retained within the recessed portion 33by an annular llat retaining ring itl secured to the bolster plate 12 byscrews 43. At

the extreme inwardly position of the segments 37, the segmented ring 36has a substantially cylindrical inner surface 44 whose diameter isslightly less than thediameter of the punch E with a smoothly roundedupper edge 45 and a sharp lower edge do.

As the formed cup 33 is conveyed towards the stripper by the punch E, itcontacts the rounded upper edge 45 of the segmented ring 36 forcing thesegments 37 outwardly to allow the cup to pass through the ring. Afterthe cup 33 has passed through the ring 36,' the springs 39 move thesegments 37 inwardly against the punch E. By suitable valving means (notshown), the flow of pressurized hydraulic lluid is then directed to thelower port 29, whereupon the punch E is moved inwardly by the actuatingcylinder 27. During theupward movement of the punch E, the upper edge ofthe formed cup 33 engages the sharp lower edge 46 of the segmented ringSe which prevents any further upward movement of the cup, therel bystripping it from the punch. To facilitate its withdrawal fromthetubular neck Sil, the forming plug F 1s preferably provided with a veryslight inward taper in the direction away from the end surface 25 of thepunch E. However, the taper is not apparent in the drawings because ofits small magnitude and the reduced scale of the drawings.

In the modied form of the invention shown in FlG- URES 3 and 4, theblank A is forced successively through drawing and ironing dies in asingle continuous operation to form an elongated cup-shaped articlehaving a tubular neck extending outwardly from 4the end surface. As usedherein, the term drawing refers to the operation wherein a fiat blank isformed into Ya cup having a Iside wall thickness approximately equal tothe thickness of the loriginal blank; inoning refers tothe operationwherein the -side wall of the drawn cup is substantially reduced inthickness and increased in length, with or without a substantialreduction in the outside diameter of the drawn cup, by ironing the `sidewall between a punch and die as the punch forces the Icup through thedie.

Referring to FIG. 4, a llat circular metal blank A having a centrallylocated hole B is positioned and held between a drawing die D and blankholder C in the same manner as hereinbefore'described for the preferredembodiment of .the invention. Mounted abo-ve lthe blank holder C is aforming punch comprising a cylindrical inner punch 47 having a flatupper end surface i8 and a conical lower end surface 49 .slidably`disposed within a tubular router punch 5th of circular cross sectionand having a conical lower end surface l53. lntegral with the lower endsurface 49 of the inner punch 47 is an axially positioned cylindricalforming plug In the extreme upward position of the inner punch 47relative to the outer punch 50, the upper end surface 48 of the innerpunch abuts a flange :54 integral with the inner surface of the outerpunch. In this position, the lower end surfaces 49 and 53 of the innerand outer punches 42-71and 50 respectively together form a .continuoussurface which is the conical surface of a truncated cone (FIGUR-ES 4 and5). For the reasons hereinbefore stated, the end surfaces 49 and 53preferably have a minimum conical vangle of 120.

The outer punch 59 is vertically reciprocable by means of twoconventional hydraulic actuating cylinders 55 disposed on opposite sidesof the punch and secured to frame members 56. The cylinders -55 havedownwardly extending piston rods 57 which are `secured t0 la horizontalmember 58 integral Vwith the outer punch 5h intermediate its ends.

Actuation `of the hydraulic cylinders 5S is preferably effected lthrough-a manually loperated, three-position coutrol valve 59 of a type wellknown in the art. The valve 59 has a cylindrical valve slide e@ slidablydispo-sed 'within a closed housing 63 (FIG. 7). The slide et) isprovided with a stem 64 which extends through one end of .the housing 63.and is connected to a pivotally mounted hand-le 65. The handle 65 ismanu-ally manipula-table to each of three positions by an operator and,as shown in FIGURES 3 and 7, is in the neutral middle position.

A pump 66 operated continuously by any suitable means such as yanelectric motor 67 pressurizes hydraulic fluid from a reservoir 68 anddelivers. it through a connecting pipe 69 to an inlet port 7@ .of thecontrol valve. With 'the valve slide dll in the neutral position, acircumferential groove 73 connects the inlet port 7@ with a return port74. The return port 74 is connected to the reservoir 63 by a pipe 75,thereby providing continuous circulation of pressurized hydraulic fluidfrom the pump 66 through the valve 59 back tothe reservoir 68 when theslide dll is in the neutral position. Also, while the sl-ide 16) is inthe neutral posi-tion, a pair of U-shaped channels 76 and 77 formed in.the slide on each side of the circumferential groove .73 straddle valveopenings 7S yand 79 re-V spectively, thereby ellectivelyfsealing thesevalve openings.

Movement of the valve handle 65 to the right as viewed in FIG. 7 shiftsthe slide 60 toward the right out of the neutral position and into aposition wherein the circumferential groove 73 is out of register withthe return port 74, thereby cutting off the direct ow of pressurizedhydraulic lliuid from the pump 66 back to the reservoir 68. At the sametime and in this position of the slide 60, one leg of the U-'shaped.channel 77, the right lega-s viewed in FIG. 7, is in communication with`an end space -80 adjacent the right end of the housing 63 and theopposite leg of the channel 77 is in communication with the valveopening 79. Similarly, the U-shaped` channel 76 connects the valveopening 78 to the return pont 74.

Thus the pressurized fluid iiows from thevalve inlet port 70 to and`through a longitudinal groove 83 in the slide 60 connecting the inletport with the end `space 80, through the U-'shaped channel 77 to theValve opening 7 9, through a branched tube 84 and hoses 85 connectingthe valve opening 79 and upper port opening-s 86 in the actuatingcylinders 55 into the upper ends of the cylinders. This results in adownward movement of the horizontal member 58 and the integrallyconnected outer punch 50 with the iiuid in the lower portions of theactuating cylinders escaping through lower ports 87 to and through hoses88 and la branched tube 89 connecting the lower ports 87 to the valveopening 78, through the U-shaped channel 76 to the return port 74, andthrough the pipe 75 back to the reservoir 68. Simultaneously and inunison with the downward movement of the outer punch 50, the inner punch47 moves downwardly, with the upper end surface 48 of Ithe inner punchabutting the ilange 54, thereby maintaining the adjacent portions of thelower end surfaces 49 and 53 ofthe inner and outer punches respectivelyin the desired flush relationship.

The forming plug F initially contacts and is forced through theapertured bl-ank A to form a tubular neck 96 and the subsequent unifiedmovement of the punches 47 and 50 through the drawing die D draws theblank 'into a cup-shaped article `)3 in the manner previously set forthin detail for .the preferred embodiment of the invention. The drawn cuphas a sidewall 94 and a bottom 95, the bottom having a conical shapecorre-sponding to the flush conical end surfaces 49 and 5-3 of the innerand outer punches 47 and 50 respectively.

After completely emerging from the drawing die D,

the drawn cup 93 is carried downwardly until a peripheral portion of theconical cup bottom 95 engages a similarly shaped conical depression 98in the upper surface of the first of two annular ironing dies 99 and 100(FIG. 5). The ironing dies 99 and 100 are mounted in the bolster plate12 below and in axial alignment with the drawing die D. An annularspacer plate 101 is disposed between the drawing die D and first ironingdie 99, and a spacer plate 102 separates the first and second ironingdies 99 and 100 respectively. As the cup bottom 95 engages the conicaldepression 98 in the rst ironing die 99, the horizontal member 58concurrently engages and closes a switch 103 secured to the frame member56 above the blank holder C. Closing of the switch 103 energizes andopens an electrically operated solenoid valve 104 allowing pressurizedfluid to flow from the branched tube 84 through a connecting hose 105 toan upper port opening 106 of an inner punch actuator 107.

The actuator 107 has a cylinder wall 108 formed by the upper portion ofthe outer punch 50 with an upper end 109 threadably secured thereto andwith the lower end formed by the ange 54. A piston 110 slidably disposedwithin the cylinder wall 108 has a piston rod 111 extending downwardlythrough the end flange 54 and attached to the upper end surface 48' ofthe inner punch 47.

The pressurized uid owing into the actuator 107 through the upper port106 forces the piston 110 downwardly, which moves the inner punch 47downwardly independently of the outer punch 50. During this moveeLOment, the fluid in the lower portion of the actuator 107 below thepiston escapes through a lower port opening 112 through a connectinghose 113 to the branched tube 89 and thence through the valve opening78, channel 76, return port 74, and pipe 75 back to the reservoir 68.

The downward movement of the inner punch 47 forces the drawn cup 93successively through apertures 114 and 115 in the iirst and secondironing dies 99 and 100 respectively, reducing the side wall thicknessand producing an elongated drawn and ironed cup-shaped article 116. Thedrawn and ironed cup 116 has an end 117 of thickness substantially thesame as that of the blank A and a side wall 118 whose thickness issubstantially less than that of the blank.

During the ironing operation, the actuating cylinders 55 continue topress the outer punch 50 downwardly toward the conical depression 98'inthe ironing die. Consequently, a substantial pre-determined holdingforce is exerted on the cup material as it ows between the conical endsurface 53 of the outer punch 50 and the conical depression 98 in theironing die 99. This holding force prevents wrinkling or folding of theVside wall 94 as the drawn cup 93 is being ironed. It also increases thepermissible amount of cold working of the metal in the first ironing die99 without causing it to tear. While not wishing to be bound by anyparticular theory, it is believed that the holding force results in aback stressing of the metal entering the first ironing die which permitsa greater deformation of the metal without the excessively high diepressure which would otherwise result and which would causeoverstressing and rupture of the material as it is pulled from the die.

The continued downward movement of the inner punch 47 carries the drawnand ironed cup 116 through a segmented stripper' ring 36 identical tothat hereinbefore described for the preferred embodiment of theinvention. After the punch 47 has reached its lowermost position,movement of the control valve handle 65 to the left as viewed in FIG. 7shifts the slide 60 toward the left and also engages and closes a switch119 mounted adjacent the handle. The switch 119 is connected in parallelto the switch 103 so that the closing of either switch energizes andopens the solenoid valve 104.

In the new position of the slide 60, the U-shaped channel 76 connectsthe valve opening 78 to an end space 120 adjacent the left end of thehousing 63. Thus, the pressurized fluid from the pump 66 ows from thevalve inlet port through the longitudinal groove 83 in the slide 60connecting the inlet port with the end space 120, through the U-shapedchannel 76 to the valve opening 78, through the branched tube 89 andhoses 88 and 113 connecting the valve opening 78 to the lower portopenings 87 and 112 respectively, and through the lower ports 87 and 112into the actuating cylinders 55 and 107 respectively, causing the outerand inner punches 50 and 47 to move upwardly,

Concurrently, the U-shaped channel 77 connects the valve opening79 tothe return port 74, permitting the fluid in the upper portions of theactuating cylinders 55 and 107 to iiow through the upper ports 86 and106 and connecting hoses 8S and 105 respectively and thence through thetube 84, channel 77, and pipe '-75 back to the reservoir 68.

On moving upwardly, the horizontal member 58 disengages the switch 103,causing it to open. However, the solenoid valve 104 is maintained in theenergized open position during the upward movement of the punches 47 and50 by the closed switch 119. As the inner punch 47 moves upwardly, thelower edge 46 of the segmented ring 36 engages the upper edge 121 of theside wall 118 of the formed article 116, stripping the formed articlefrom the punch.

It is apparent that by the use of the apparatus described, which alsoexemplifies the method steps required for consummating the process ofthe invention, it is possible to form in a single continuous stroke acup shaped metal article having a short tubular neck extendinglongitudinally outwardly from the end surface. The article thus formedmay have a relatively short side wall height by employing a singledrawing operation, or the side wall may be made relatively long ascompared to the diameter of the formed article by using one or moreironing dies positioned below and in close succession to the drawing dieso that in a single continuous stroke, the blank is first drawn into acup form and the drawn cup then carried through the ironing dies toreduce its diameter and the thickness of the side wall.

As compared to methods and apparatus 'heretofore in use for forming sucharticles, theV subject invention requires substantially less equpimentand installation space therefor since the formation yof the tubular necktakes place simultaneously with the cup forming operation. Theelimination of the additional equipment required to form and pierce thetubular neck and the operating steps involved results in savings infabrication costs which may Vreach substantial proportions, e.g.,V atthe high rates of production generally required when the formed articlesare to be used for container components.

It is thought that the invention and many of its attendant advantageswill be understood from the foregoing description and it will beapparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction, andarrangement of parts of the apparatus mentioned herein and in the stepsand their order of accomplishment of the method described herein,without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention orsacrificing all of its material advantages, the apparatus and processhereinbefore described being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.V

I claim:

' l. An apparatus for forming a thin metal blank having 'a hole thereininto a cup-shaped article having a side wall and an end with alongitudinally extendingVopen-ended tubular neck disposed on said endcomprising, a die having a die aperture, metal working surface means onsaid die aperture for cold working said 1blank material as said materialis slidably moved across and in contact with said surface means, aholding ymember adapted toposition and releasably hold a peripheralmargin of said blank against said die with a predetermined forceya punchreciprocably mounted in axial alignment with said die aperture, an endsurface on said punch, means for moving said punch through said dieaperture and withdrawing all of saidperipheral margin from between saidholding member and said die and transporting all of said peripheralmargin across and in contact with said surface means to form all of saidperipheral margin into a side wall portion of `a cup-shaped articlehaving an end, and plug means disposed on said punch end surface forforming an openended tubular neck extending longitudinally outwardlyfrom said end by distending a portion of said end adjacent saidY holesimultaneously with theV forming of said side Wall portion of saidcup-shaped article.

2. The vapparatus set forth in claim l wherein said die aperture and thecross section of said punch are circular, said punch and die beingadapted to'form a disk-shaped blank having a centrally located circularhole therein into a cylindrical cup-shaped article having a centrallydisposed tubular neck of Icircular cross section extendinglongitudinally outwardly from said end.

3. The apparatus set forth inyclaim l wherein said forming plug has laslight inward taper in the direction away from said end surface tofacilitate withdrawal of said plug from the tubular neck formed on theend of said cup shaped article.

corresponding to the desired shape of the end of said cupshaped article.

5. The apparatus set forth in claim 4 wherein said endy ci surface issubstantially in the form of a frustrum of a cone.

6. An apparatus for forming a cylindrical cup-shaped article having sidewalls and an end with a longitudinally extending tubular neck centrallydisposed on said end froma thin, disk-shaped metal blank having acentrally located circular hole therein comprising, a drawing die, aholding member disposed above said drawing vdie adapted to position andyieldingly hold a peripheral margin of said blank against said die witha predetermined force, a punch comprising concentric inner and outermembers, said inner member being cylindrical in shape with van endsurface, said outer member having a circular cross section with aconical end surface and being slidably disposed on said inner member, acylindrical forming plug integral with said end surface of said innermember, said plug having `a diameter which is greater than the diameterof the hole in said disk, means for moving said punch members in unisonthrough said drawingdie to withdraw said peripheral margin from betweensaid holding member and said die and'move said blank including saidperipheral margin through said die to draw said blank into a cupshapedarticle having side walls and an end and simultaneously therewithforcing said plug through said hole to distend the metal adjacent saidhole Vand form an open tubular neck extending longitudinally outwardlyfrom the end thereof, at least one ironing die disposed below and inclose succession to said drawing die, the uppermost ironing die having aconical depression in the upper surface thereof corresponding in shapeto the conical end surface of said outer member, and means associatedwith said first mentioned means for moving said inner member throughsaid ironing dies to force said drawn article therethrough while saidouter member holds said drawn article against said conical depressionwith a pre-determined force whereby the side wall of said drawn articleis reduced in diameter and decreased in thickness land its lengthcorrespondingly increased.

7. A method of making a cylindrical cup-shaped metal article having sidewalls and an end with 1a tubular neck extending longitudinally outwardlyfrom said end comprising the steps of, providing a thin disk-shapedmetal blank having a circular hole therein, positioning and yieldinglyholding a peripheral margin of said blank against a ring die elementwith a predetermined force, forcing said blank including said peripheralmargin through said die element to form a cylindrical cup-shaped articlehaving side walls and an end, and simultaneously with said cup formingoperation forming the metal adjacent said hole into yan open tubularneck.

S. The method set forth in claim 7 with the additional step of forcingsaid cup-shaped article through at least one additional ring die elementdisposed below and in close succession to said rst mentioned dieelement, thereby reducing the thickness of and elongating said side wallin a single continuous operation.

9. An apparatus for forming la metal blank having an aperturetherethrough into a hollow cup-shaped article having a side Wall and anend with a longitudinally extending open-ended tubular neck disposed onsaid end comprising, a punch having a longitudinal axis and an endsurface, said punch having a portion of substantially uniformcross-section as measured in the direction transverse to said axis and aside surface comprising the surface of said portion, holding meansadapted to position and releasably press a peripheral margin of saidblank against a holding surface with a predetermined force, a die havinga die opening in axial alignment with said longitudinal axis of saidpunch, said die opening comprising a metal working surface with the areaof said opening as measured in the direction transverse to saidlongitudinal axis corresponding in shape but being greater than saidpunch portion crosssection area, said holding surface comprising asurface of said die surrounding said die opening, means for moving saidpunch through said die opening and progressively withdrawing all of saidperipheral margin from between said holding means and said holdingsurface and carrying said margin past and in contact with said workingsurface of said die opening to form all of said peripheral margin intoclose conformity and engagement with said side surface of said punchwhereby said peripheral margin is entirely formed into 'a side wallportion of a cup-shaped article having an end, said holding means beingadapted to maintain said force on the portion of said peripheral marginin contact with said holding surface las said peripheral margin isprogressively withdrawn from said holding means and forced through saiddie opening, and plug means disposed on said punch end surface forforming an open-ended tubular neck extending longitudinally outwardlyfrom said end by distending a 15 portion of said end adjacent said holesimultaneously with the forming of said peripheral margin intoconformity and engagement with said side surface of said punch.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,190,659 2/40Guerin 113-44 2,234,225 3/41 Becker 113-44 2,412,813 12/46 Keller 113-492,531,663 11/50 Bignella et al. 113-42 2,602,411 7/52 Schnell 113-462,664,061 12/53 Rhodes 113-46 2,821,156 1/58 Lyon 113-49 2,878,513 3/ 59Slaughter 18-19 2,929,345 3/ 60 Zatyko 113-51 2,943,587 7/ 60 Samuelsson113-51 WILLIAM I. STEPHENSON, Primary Examiner.

NEDWIN BERGER, Examiner.

1. AN APPARATUS FOR FORMING A THIN METAL BLANK HAVING A HOLE THEREININTO A CUP-SHAPED ARTICLE HAVING A SIDE WALL AND AN END WITH ALONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING OPEN-ENDED TUBULAR NECK DISPOSED ON SAID ENDCOMPRISING, A DIE HAVING A DIE APERTURE, METAL WORKING SURFACE MEANS ONSAID DIE APERTURE FOR COLD WORKING SAID BLANK MATERIAL AS SAID MATERIALIS SLIDABLY MOVED ACROSS AND IN CONTACT WITH SAID SURFACE MEANS, AHOLDING MEMBER ADAPTED TO POSITION AND RELEASABLY HOLD A PERIPHERALMARGIN OF SAID BLANK AGAINST SAID DIE WITH A PREDETERMINED FORCE, APUNCH RECIPROCABLY MOUNTED IN AXIAL ALIGNMENT WITH SAID DIE APERTURE, ANEND SURFACE ON SAID PUNCH, MEANS FOR MOVING SAID PUNCH THROUGH SAID DIEAPERTURE AND WITHDRAWING ALL OF